Food from Home

Yesterday when we went to the grocery store, I could vaguely feel how a foreigner would entering the immense sea of variety. The cereal aisle alone is so consuming with so many choices. I also have to get accustomed to not going to the store nearly every single day or to a separate bakery. It sounds so mundane, but it's really fascinating to have a bit of reverse culture shock. I lived in the US my entire life, until a year and half ago. I was last home in October, yet these small things still strike me. That is one of the joys of living abroad - having something to compare with and grow accustomed to and then suddenly something that was familiar for so long seems new.

Thankfully I'm not entirely foreign to this culture, and I know what I like and what brands I'm loyal to. Plus, I always have some great family recipes to come back to that can only be made at home.

My Grandma makes an amazing baklava at Christmas and she keeps the recipe top secret. Fortunately she always freezes some, so I can enjoy it when I come home. We aren't even Greek, but people often tell her it's the best baklava they've ever had.

Since today is Valentine's Day, my Mom makes her delicious chocolate Kahlúa cheesecake into tiny bite sized hearts. It is a great consolation if I must spend Valentine's day apart from Stefan. I'm already looking forward to picking him up at the airport tomorrow night. I'm also looking forward to hearing what his food requests are. He always tends to have a huge list of restaurants and grocery items.

I definitely notice how much more of a consumer society the US is and how infectious it is. Especially with the exchange rate in our favor, it will be difficult not to come home with a new wardrobe.